Assimilation
by lacihparg
Summary: Diana of Themyscira lands in Gotham after being sent to learn more about Man's World. By day she is a secretary for Harvey Dent, but by night she lurks with the upper class of Gotham. When socialite Bruce Wayne catches her eye, Diana finds herself learning about Man's World from a man himself. AU; BMWW. T for now, possibly M later.
1. Introduction

When Hera gave Themyscira to the Amazons, she intended it as a retreat from their war. To let the warriors lick their wounds, recover their losses, and become strong once again. She did not mean for the women to hide themselves away from the world and become separate from the rest of society.

As the years turned into centuries turned into millennia, the Amazons flourished. They became stronger, intelligent, and mastered hand-to-hand combat. They worshiped the goddesses who saved them and brought them to a new home. They revered the gods who blessed them and protected them. And yet, even as the women grew and blossomed into a paragon of a beautiful and seemingly perfect culture, they were scared. Scared of Man's World and the dangers of the male sex that lurked beyond there. Scared of being hurt again, of opening their heart to love and being betrayed, of experiencing the pure agony of war.

When the six gave Hippolyta a child, they intended it as a reminder. From Demeter came great strength; Athena gave wisdom and courage. Artemis gifted the babe a kindred spirit with animals, and Aphrodite gave her beauty and compassion. Hestia made sure fire would always be her friend, and Hermes granted her speed and flight. With these gifts, the first child born to an Amazon in three thousand years was to be the turning point in Amazonian history.

Diana, the Princess of Themyscira, astounded her Amazon sisters with the blessings of her gifts. As the princess grew, trained, and learned, her mother became even more determined to protect her precious child, the one stolen from her in her first life, from the horrendous danger Man's World presented. So, when Hera came to the Queen and told her that the Amazons needed to become known once again, Hippolyta forbade her daughter from participating in the tournament that would send an Amazon into Man's World.

Diana disobeyed her mother and hid her true identity with her helmet, fighting, racing, and defeating all other Amazons in the events. When Hippolyta demanded that the masked competitor removed her helmet, the hint of raven hair that fell out of the protective headgear first made her heart drop like a stone. And yet, Hippolyta had decreed that the winner of the tournament would be the Amazon's scout into Man's World, to learn about the way it functioned and how it had changed in the years since they had walked on the mainland.

Gifted the Lasso of Truth, the Golden Girdle, and the bracelets made from Athena's shield, Diana was armed with protection and a means of discovering the truth about Man's World. She left her home, the island of Themyscira, to discover whether the Amazons could ever rejoin the earth. With no expectations, she flew to a hub of activity previously indicated by a guide, ready to begin her mission.

Assimilation.

* * *

 **A/N: Hello everyone, Lace here. I haven't written fanfiction in quite some time. Hopefully I won't be too off base here! Cover Image credit goes Jasric Deviant Art.** **jasric . / art / Batman-and-Wonder-Woman-391998303 (remove the spaces!)**

 **As always, any questions, feel free to leave them in a review or PM me. I'll take any feedback I can get! Thanks for reading!**

 **-Lace**


	2. Chapter 1

Grey eyes scanned the hub of activity below, squinting in the early afternoon sun. They saw so many different things and heard a cacophony of voices, but couldn't understand. First, the language was different. Diana was not prepared for that. How was she supposed to adapt to Man's World if she could not even communicate? She spoke Themysciran and could use some signs, but there was likely a language shift in any non-verbal gestures used in this city.

Second, the people were all dressed strangely. They seemed almost to be costumes, with wild hair and bright colors everywhere. What caught Diana by surprise the most was that the colors coincided with the armor she wore. Looking down at her chest plate, she traced the golden stripes, the red base, and brought her eyes back down to the people below. They adorned themselves with red, white, and blue beaded necklaces, while their shirts were red and white stripes with white stars on blue backgrounds, strikingly similar to her own clothing. The coincidence was strange, but Diana thanked the gods for allowing her to blend in somewhat easier than she expected on her first moments in Man's World.

{Man's World,} she breathed. She was finally here. Each breath, though tinged with whatever pollutants the men had brought upon Gaia, was fresher than those on Themyscira. She had a whole new world of exploration and learning here. And, though she loved her mother so, free from the overarching eyes of Hippolyta.

If she was to explore this world, Diana would have to get to ground. But she had a gut feeling that she was (again) the only being in this city who could fly. She ran along the rooftops, parallel to the long stretch of people in the streets, until she found a quiet alley where she could drop a few stories to have both feet planted on cemented earth. Picking a stride with confidence she barely felt, the princess stepped out of the shelter of the buildings and into a wide street, packed with hundreds of people speaking their strange language and shouting.

Her eyes widened, drinking in the sights as if she had come upon a well in the desert. The people were parading through the streets (perhaps this was truly a parade?), with others mingling on the edge of the street and conversing. She took a step forward but was stopped short by a collision with a young girl. The small child looked up at her, but Diana gave her a smile and helped her to her feet, where she darted back to rejoin her family. The princess turned to watch them go by, the mother's hands firmly entwined with the man of the family. Such a strange sight.

Diana's ears picked up the melody of a song behind her, so she turned and walked towards the sound of the music. It transcended any language barriers, in her mind, the sharp sounds of the brass instrument such a contrast to the gentle lullaby of harps she was used to. And too, drums, a stringed instrument, and a vocalist, all playing a song and becoming one with each other. She studied the musicians, surprise momentarily taking her to see women and men playing together before she remembered her current location. She stood, watching, mystified as a woman sang and beat drum while two men played the brass and the strings, and they did it together.

{Mother would never believe this,} she murmured, open wonder displayed on her face.

* * *

Julia Kapatelis sat at her favorite outdoor café and sipped her latte carefully. Hot though it was, the caffeine was refreshing and filled her otherwise old bones with a sense of false energy. Vanessa had wanted to enjoy everything the parade would offer, so she had sent her daughter off with fully charged phone and pepper spray. She could handle herself.

It was when Greek filled her ears over the sound of the local band that Julia found herself startled, turning to look at a tall young woman to her left. Dressed in something similar to a one-piece, the woman's very patriotic outfit left little to be imagined, but still Julia felt compelled to say something. Maybe it was the chance to speak in the not often used tongue (in Gotham, anyways), or maybe it was to see if the woman needed help.

{Music is a wonderful thing, isn't it, my dear?} she finally settled on, watching her new companion. The woman whirled with wide eyes, staring at Julia with open shock. Julia gave her a wide smile, eyes creasing, and pulled a blonde and grey streak of hair behind her ears.

"I apologize for intruding. My name is Julia, and I couldn't help myself from an opportunity to speak in Greek again."

The woman did not respond, still looking at her with a quizzical look. Julia repeated her introduction in Greek once again, and the woman's eyes lit up.

{It is a pleasure to meet you, Julia. I am Diana. Could you teach me your language?}

It was a very forward question, and one that caught the older woman off guard. She gestured to the empty seat across from her and waited for Diana to sit down. {Where do you come from, Diana?}

The taller, younger woman sat and looked at Julia earnestly, though a faraway look graced her eyes. {You have visited my home once, long ago,} she finally said. {But now my people seek knowledge, and I have been sent as a scout. I have never been to your land before, but now that I am here, I wish to stay and learn all I can. Will you help me?}

Julia looked down at her latte and took another sip. Surely she should be worried, taking in some strange foreign woman who didn't even speak English. And yet, there was no fear in her heart. Diana already felt like a sister to her, as if they were kindred spirits who hadn't seen each other in many years. Standing, Julia invited Diana with a wave.

* * *

How fortunate that she would meet someone Sent in her first minutes in Man's World! Diana silently thanked Athena for her wisdom. She followed Julia cautiously, the small device in her hands catching her curiosity.

{What is that?}

Julia looked up after a moment, distracted by whatever the thing was. {A cell phone. It allows me to talk to anyone I want anywhere in the world with a press of the button.}

Diana frowned. {May I see?} Julia handed over the small device. Diana tossed it between her hands, hefting the weight. It was covered in small buttons and a sort of frame around the top that held a picture. It was confusing. {It would be good in a sling shot,} she finally said, causing Julia to laugh. She gave the thing back and took in the surroundings of her new home.

 _Home._ She hadn't meant to think that, and yet she did. Was she already tossing out Themyscira for Man's World? It was a scary thought, that her thinking patterns were already being altered. Perhaps something in the air? She took a deep breath but coughed, a foul stench filling her nose.

{We just passed over a sewer vent,} Julia explained apologetically. {You might want to wait for the deep breaths until we get inside.} Diana took her words to heart and breathed shallowly, though she could still taste a tang. Instead, she turned her eyes to capture the city she was in.

The bright, expressive costumes of the men and women marching down the street caught her attention first. It seemed a reflective material was on all of the clothing, causing it to glitter and sparkle in the sun every time they moved. A walking band followed not far behind, carrying their instruments on their shoulders and hiding their faces behind very high head gear. After that came a giant, horseless chariot that caused Diana to stop in her tracks. She watched as the massive vehicle floated slowly by, women on it dressed in long flowing robes and wearing a peculiar green crown. They tossed small slips of green paper to the people on either side of the street, giggling and laughing as they did.

{Courtesy of Wayne Enterprises,} Julia said, stepping behind Diana. {They're giving out coupons to different restaurants and venues in the city designed to look like our money.}

{Wayne Enterprises? Coupons?} She repeated the unfamiliar words, turning to Julia for an explanation. While she found her words, Diana watched the next portion of the parade, where men mounted on horses trotted down the street, their steeds decorated with large plumes and armor. A comforting sight in this world of the unfamiliar.

{Wayne Enterprises is the corner stone of our city. A lot of the things you see were funded by Bruce Wayne and his company.} Julia spread her arms wide to take in the whole of the city. {Coupons are used in lieu of money. For instance, if an item is $20, you can use a $5 coupon to reduce the price.} Diana nodded, realizing that many things in Man's World would take some basic knowledge before she could fully understand. She let Julia pull her away from the mesmerizing parade, taking her down a side street. As the noise from the mass of people diminished, she began to focus on her surroundings.

Diana looked around in wonder, suddenly realizing how tall and bleak the buildings were. Great, large masses of brick and stone rose up on either side, their faces broken by systematic placements of windows and columns. The whole street had a methodical feeling to it. There was no organic movement.

{Everything is so…straight,} she finally remarked. {I see hints, pieces of my home architecture but it buried behind your imposing walls and sharp corners.} Julia's response was interrupted by a loud tolling bell. Diana whirled, but Julia calmed her with a hand.

{We have a clock tower, Diana. It rings out across the area to mark the passing of time. C'mon, we're at my apartment.} Diana followed her, carefully watching as she ascended stairs and walked past countless doorways. When the two women finally stopped at a particular door marked with a strange inscription, Julia produced a key from her pocket and opened the portal into a world Diana had never known before.

* * *

The first thing Julia did for her likely permanent guest was settle her on the couch. Her apartment had always seemed cozy, the large striped sofa butted up against a wall to make room for the large entertainment center that housed her books and her television. The giant shelfing unit dwarfed the room, so the only other furniture was a reading chair and a coffee table.

Julia retreated to the kitchen to pour two glasses of water, watching Diana from behind the open wall. The foreigner looked around, but she had a strong curiosity in the books. Julia smiled at that. _Woman after my own heart_ , she thought, bringing the glasses into the living room.

{Diana, you need a last name if you're going to stay,} she told her, sitting across from her. {And a new wardrobe.}

Diana took the glass from her hands but frowned at her words. {My name and armor are not good enough here in Man's World?} Julia shook her head, explaining further.

{Your name is fine, as is your armor. But here, women dress far differently than you, and everyone has both a first and last name. You let me handle the clothes, but do get your name settled, honey.}

Diana seemed to take it all in stride, so Julia left her to chew on her thoughts while she cooked dinner and thought about her new charge. Thank goodness she had gotten a three bedroom apartment. It seemed a large extravagance at the time, since they never had visitors over, but Julia had always wanted the option. Now it seemed perfect.

Julia started when she heard a loud thud and a string of curses she'd never heard before. {Sorry!} came a breathless Diana's voice. {I knocked over a vase. My apologies.} Julia just chuckled her forgiveness (after all, there was no crash) and pondered how her daughter would fare.

Vanessa would be fine with things. Her child always adapted. But if Diana wanted to stay here, to settle and learn, she'd need more than just a name and some clothes. She'd need a job, a backstory, something that would give her a place in Gotham rather than just being another name. Not to mention learning the language.

{Diana,} she called, {Come in here please.} Something had stuck in Julia's mind. Diana had said that Julia had visited her home once before, yet Julia didn't recognize the accent on Diana's Greek to tell her what area she had come from. When the raven-haired woman sat down on the barstool, Julia paused in her cooking long enough to catch her attention.

{You said that I had visited your home before?}

Diana nodded in agreement. {Yes. Once, as a child, you fell into the ocean. Thetis rescued you from the waves and brought you to the Island of Healing. There, Epione healed you and Hippolyta gave you a Guardian, so you may be blessed and wise throughout your years. You are welcome to Themyscira whenever you wish, and you are an Amazon just as much as I.}

Julia continued to stir her pot, but her heart raced and her mind wandered. She remembered a story from her parents when she fell overboard off of the shores of Greece, but her father was able to jump in and catch her within moments. There was never a memory of being taken to some island, but her soul agreed with Diana's words.

{Themyscira is the home of the Amazons,} she said dumbly, still rather at a loss for words. The Amazons were a mythological tribe, not people who were alive today. {You still live?}

It was Diana's turn to treat Julia to a warm smile. {We do. Hera granted Themyscira to the Amazons after the war. There, our people recovered from our losses and were also blessed with immortality. I, however, am not nearly as old as my sisters, for I was given to Hippolyta by the gods.}

Julia still said nothing, but when Diana leaned forward to touch a hand to her arm, she stopped her. {I'm processing, Diana. You've tossed a lot of new information at me, so I'm trying to understand.} The Amazon nodded (after all, she was experiencing the same thing) and sat there in comfortable silence as Julia thought.

The first thing she had to reconcile was that the Amazons existed in the first place. That in of itself would be the most difficult task of the whole thing. First, if the way Diana talked and acted was any indication, they didn't have any technology. Pictures were out of the question. Second, Diana wasn't even as old as the others, so she couldn't ask for details about wars over the millennia and see if they got the information correct. The only proof Julia had of the islands and the Amazons was the living, breathing woman standing in front of her.

Which, if she was honest, was proof enough for her to believe in something. She had been blessed with discernment her whole life and her gut wasn't yelling at her to kick this woman out of her house _now_ , so Julia was rather inclined to think that maybe, just maybe there was some truth in what Diana said.

A ringing phone interrupted her thinking. Picking up the call, Vanessa's distinctive voice rang out on the other end.

"Mom! Can I stay over at Melissa's tonight?"

Julia paused, her eyebrows raised in surprise. When had Vanessa run into her? "Sweetheart, when did you—"

"I saw her at the park with her family. Her parents are fine with it. Can I?"

She waited the typical "mom" amount of time before acquiescing. "Fine. Do you need clothes?"

A girlish squeal erupted from the receiver. "No, she has clothes I can borrow. Don't want to bother you. Thanks. Bye!"

Chuckling, Julia pocketed her phone and went back to the pasta sauce now bubbling deliciously. Noticing Diana's curious look at the English and the very loud girl who was on the other end, she just shook her head and pointed to a picture frame by Diana's elbow.

{My daughter,} she explained. {She's thirteen. She'll be staying with a friend tonight so you can continue to get acclimated.}

{May I begin learning your language now?} The request caught Julia by surprise, but she nodded. Draining the noodles and pouring the sauce over them, she mixed the meal together in the pot before ladling it into some bowls. She walked over to the table and set them down, pointing to the chair Diana was to sit in.

"Chair."

* * *

Before Diana answered, she took a cursory look around what she assumed to be the kitchen. On the other side of the raised half-table she sat at was a large pot set into the counter that water ran from. Next to that was the large square thing Julia had used to cook, and then a taller cabinet with doors that emanated cool air.

From there was another door, and then across from all of that was the small windowed nook whose table they sat at now. She was very curious about all of the different functions of the items here, and almost wanted Julia to explain everything to her in her native tongue before she began learning words.

{Tomorrow would you explain the function of all of these items?} she asked, raising her hand in a sweeping gesture to include the kitchen and the room with the sofa. Julia nodded her agreement, so Diana asked one last question before beginning to learn the language of Man's World.

{What is the name of this language?}

"English."

Diana repeated both "chair" and "English" carefully, looking to Julia to make sure she had pronounced them right. When a small nod confirmed her speech, she pointed to the meal before her.

"Pasta."

The rest of the evening continued like that, Julia naming whatever item or object Diana pointed to, and Diana would repeat it. They stuck to kitchen objects, and soon Diana could name all the items, even if she didn't know what they did. Julia showed her how the "sink" worked next, rinsing out both of their bowls by pressing a lever to bring water into the house.

{Won't it spill all over your floors?} Diana asked, anxiously watching the water level. Julia shook her head and pointing to the hole in the bottom of the sink.

{It has a drain. Pipes run all through our walls and take the used water outside to larger pipes under the street. There, all the water from all the houses and buildings flow towards a treatment plant where anything bad is removed from the water so it can be used again.}

Diana nodded, wondering how a plant that filtered water could survive in such a non-green place like this. But, she trusted that Julia would explain everything as best she could. Once Julia had cleaned and dried their dishes, she placed them back in a cabinet and led her back to the couch-room.

Julia made the giant rectangle in the middle of the bookshelves come to life, where Diana listened to English pour out of something called "speakers" while little people danced inside the box.

{Do they ever get to come out?} she asked, worried for how long the people could survive in there. Julia laughed at her question (something Diana didn't appreciate), but explained that those people were in something called a studio and what they were doing was being sent to their television.

"Television?" Diana sounded out the word slowly, unsure of her pronunciation. But it was correct. After Julia had watched whatever it was that playing on the tel-e-vis-ion, she began naming items in what she called the living room. Diana learned many other words that night, and eventually she was able to understand questions Julia asked her and respond correctly. She thanked Athena for the wisdom she was granted and how easily she was able to learn this new language of English.

When Julia led her down a long hallway to the spare bedroom and gave her a nightgown to sleep in, Diana managed to thank her for her hospitality in English. She turned the gown over in her hands, admiring how soft the fabric was and the intricate patterns on the cloth.

"Tomorrow I'll take you shopping for some clothes. I'm afraid it won't be much, but enough to get you started." Diana processed the sentence, making sure she understood it, and nodded.

"Could I have books?" she asked. "And pen and paper." {I need to make sure I can read and write as well as speak. Copying the alphabet will be easy, and even if I don't fully understand the books I want to see how your words are formed.}

When Julia returned with the requested items, she bid Diana a good night and shut the door softly. The Amazon removed her armor carefully, using a large blanket to polish some of the imperfections off of it before placing it in a chair. She then slid the silky gown over her body, relishing in the feel of it. As used as she was to sleeping in the nude, the clothing wasn't unwelcome with its weightless quality.

Finding a table and chair to sit at, Diana used the paper for was to write a report in her native tongue so that she would not forget the first day. First impressions were always the best ones, but from here out she could just list important events and discoveries and on the day they were made. The pen wrote so much differently than the styluses of her home, but it didn't smudge. Diana did learn that she couldn't undo her mistakes, either, so she took to scribbling out any unwanted character when her hand didn't watch up to her brain. She detailed the architecture, how men and women mingled together happily, and that everyone seemed to revel and enjoy themselves like a festival. She mentioned Julia and how the gods had guided her to someone who spoke the tongue, and how in her first day she could already speak some of the unfamiliar language.

That finished, Diana carefully folded the paper and placed in a neat pile, labeling the outside of it with {Arrival}. She then took a book with her to bed, climbing under the covers and settling into the soft comfort of the mattress. While different from home, a bed was a universal comfort, and she felt at peace. She opened the book to the first page and began reading, skimming for words she understood and patterns in the syntax.

She fell asleep with the book across her chest.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you guys so much for the feedback on my introduction chapter! I'll go ahead and touch on some of the things the reviews brought up:**

 **CrazyPhenom & mbembet: I find it interesting that y'all address happiness of it being a comic based BMWW fic. While I do draw inspiration from the JLU animated show and other DC sources, the comics have long been my favorite. For particular things in my headcanon about the Bruce/Diana relationship, read Trinity and Hiketeia. Both of those establish the basis of how I think the two will interact. (But seriously. Read Hiketeia. I love it.)**

 **To all the reviewers: I'm so glad everyone is excited for this! I wanted to use the first chapter to establish a bit of the backstory for my setting. It's a mix of Golden Age and Post-Crisis Themyscira history (with a spice of Lace-history thrown in!), so if any of y'all are confused, here's a run down:**

 **Hera never intended for the Amazons to stay on the island forever. When they did, she finally decided to give Hippolyta the child she was denied, hoping that the thought of a new life would make the queen open to the world. When it only made her more insular, Hera told the queen to pick a champion to scout out Man's World to see if the Amazons could rejoin the world at large again. One thing led to another, and Diana wins the tourney and becomes the scout.**

 **So, Diana isn't there to bring Steve Trevor back to Man's World, nor is she there as Ambassador. It's a nice little mashup of different storylines, so I hope it makes sense. Also, be warned that other characters will be making an appearance, but not in their original roles (IE Harvey Dent, who we'll meet later, as well as people like Etta Candy).**

 **I'll admit, this whole thing might start out kind of slow with Diana learning English and trying to find a job and everything, but I hope to get things moving along next chapter. As always, please leave me feedback and let me know what you think!**


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